Societal Stakeholders’ Toolbox at CEN and CENELEC

CEN and CENELEC have launched a new section on their website as part of their ongoing efforts to encourage the widest possible range of stakeholders to get involved in standardization activities and help shape the content of European Standards. 


The 'Societal Stakeholders’ Toolbox' is aimed in particular at supporting the participation of organizations that are concerned with defending the interests of consumers, protecting the environment, and promoting the health and safety of workers.

Standards, which are documents that set out specifications and other technical information with regard to various kinds of products, materials, services and processes, can have significant impacts on the safety and well-being of consumers and workers, as well as on the wider society and the environment. Enabling organizations representing societal stakeholders to participate in the development of standards helps to ensure that all relevant concerns can be taken into account during the drafting process.

The 'Societal Stakeholders’ Toolbox' can be accessed directly from the homepage of the CEN-CENELEC website. It provides practical advice to organizations representing consumers, workers and environmental interests on where to find information about ongoing standardization activities and how they can contribute to the standards development process at national, European and international levels.

The toolbox has been developed by CEN and CENELEC in the framework of their ongoing collaboration with three umbrella organizations that represent the interests of specific interest groups within the European Standardization System.  These organizations are: ANEC (the European consumer voice in standardisation), ECOS (European Environmental Citizens Organisation for Standardisation), and ETUI(European Trade Union Institute – Health and Safety Department).

At national level, many members of CEN and CENELEC are also cooperating with societal stakeholders organizations. Based on existing examples of good practice, CEN and CENELEC are encouraging all of their members (in 33 European countries) to support the active involvement of societal stakeholders in standardization activities and to facilitate this by providing relevant information on their respective websites.

The 'Societal Stakeholders’ Toolbox' was officially presented at the CEN-CENELEC New Year Cocktail Reception, which took place in Brussels on 22 January 2014.